This article appeared in Cybersecurity Law & Strategy, an ALM publication for privacy and security professionals, Chief Information Security Officers, Chief Information Officers, Chief Technology Officers, Corporate Counsel, Internet and Tech Practitioners, In-House Counsel. Visit the website to learn more.

Whether they like it or not, lawyers interact with data every day. While there is no need for them to seek advanced degrees in data science or statistics, it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to provide adequate representation without being skilled in the uses of data. Having some awareness of the importance of data and occasionally using it to strategic advantage in a legal matter or in a legal business context — what I would call basic data literacy — will soon be insufficient. They will need to become data competent to stay competitive and relevant.

Why Is Data Competency Important?

In nearly every other industry and profession — finance and banking, insurance, retail and healthcare, to name just a few — the data-driven mindset has taken root and yielded abundant fruit. Law firms need only look at their own clients to confirm this. Many companies routinely analyze and manipulate data across multiple business functions to quantify variables like risk, the likelihood of certain outcomes, the predicted cost of complex projects, and the efficiency of specific practices and teams. Why not law firms?